On Saturday, No. 1 Notre Dame squared off against No. 2 Maryland in Atlanta for a rematch of last season’s men’s lacrosse national championship game. Though the Irish bested the Terrapins on the big stage in 2024, Maryland exacted some revenge this time, handing Notre Dame an 11-10 loss.
The result snapped Notre Dame’s 17-game winning streak, which dated back to Feb. 25, 2024. Meanwhile, Maryland moved to 5-0 with its third top-five win of the season and should take over the national No. 1 ranking this weekend.
Notre Dame started fast with a pair of goals in the game’s first 123 seconds. Graduate attacker Jake Taylor went behind the back for the day’s opening goal, and senior attacker Chris Kavanagh followed with his 10th tally of the season only 44 seconds later. After Eric Spanos responded with Maryland’s first goal of the day, both offenses went quiet for nine minutes. Sophomore midfielder Jordan Faison, making his return to Atlanta after playing in the college football national championship game Jan. 20, broke the silence with his second goal of the season with 1:44 to play in the first quarter. Spanos got one back for Maryland in the final 10 seconds, closing the first quarter with the Irish up 3-2.
Holding the Irish scoreless through the first eight minutes of quarter two, the Terrapins took their first lead of the day. Jack Schultz and Daniel Kelly provided the scoring, moving Maryland into a 4-3 advantage. However, the Irish swung momentum back in their favor to end the first half. After Taylor tied the game, senior midfielder Will Angrick made a phenomenal play to set up junior midfielder Max Busenkell’s go-ahead goal. Checked hard to the turf 25 feet away from goal, Angrick kept his eyes up and found Busenkell from the seat of his pants and the latter found twine to deliver the Irish a 5-4 lead.
Maryland’s defense told the story of the second half, holding strong and not conceding a goal in the first 12 minutes after halftime. Meanwhile, Bryce Ford scored back-to-back goals to give Maryland a lead it would not relinquish. Notre Dame nearly tied the game at six moments later, but defender Will Schaller made an incredible play to keep the lead intact. With goalkeeper Logan McNaney stranded out of the cage, Schaller was the only man back against a 2-on-1 and made a diving save on freshman midfielder Matt Jeffery’s shot. Though Taylor completed his hat trick, Maryland’s lead held at 8-6 entering the final quarter.
Kavanagh awakened for the Irish in the fourth, scoring three goals in the first nine minutes to keep Notre Dame within one. However, Maryland had the answers, as Spanos finished off his hat trick and Braden Erksa and Kelly buried additional goals. Kelly’s goal, which came with Maryland a man down, put the Terrapins up 11-9 with 5:22 to play. The Irish could muster only one more driving goal from Faison, as McNaney made a series of massive saves on Kavanagh down the stretch. His final stop in tight, which came with 25 seconds left and Maryland up 11-10, sealed the one-goal victory for the Terrapins.
Taylor and Kavanagh each finished with four points for the Irish, while Busenkell added two assists to his goal. Senior FOGO Will Lynch was terrific in his role, winning 16 of his 22 draws and collecting a season-high 12 ground balls. In goal, junior Thomas Ricciardelli made nine saves for Notre Dame. McNaney starred for Maryland with 16 saves, while Spanos and Kelly each recorded nat tricks on offense.
Now at 3-1, the Irish will take on Big Ten opponents Ohio State and Michigan before starting ACC play against Duke on March 29. The Irish will host the Buckeyes on Saturday at 2 p.m. before visiting the Wolverines on March 15.
